thought for the day

yesterday, fara and i went around JCL asking people if we could pray for them. at first i was pretty scared and not excited about doing this but it turned out to be a pleasant and encouraging part of my day :). i got to talk to people i usually dont get to talk to and pray for things i usually dont pray for. i think i might even wanna do it more often! everyone was really appreciative and kind about what we were doing and all opened up and welcomed prayer. what fara said is really true, asking how we can pray for someone is much less intimidating and uncomfortable than "ARE YOU GOING TO HELL!??"

for God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love, and of self-discipline.

question of the day: what have you learned this past semester? (what have you learned about God? what has God been teaching you? what have you learned about yourself? how have you grown?) or what goals do you have for next semester?

about the title: my algebra 2 teacher sophomore year in high school always started class with a "thought for the day" that she would read from a devotional book. i cant even remember ONE "thought for the day" that she shared with us but i do remember how it always provoked thought and reflection about my life... i hope to be a teacher that can do the same for my students :)

happy, simeon?

is weili a picture hog or does he love himself way too much? are they the same thing?

how to cook hardcore

^ uncle stanley from vancouver came over to teach us how to make noodles and dumplings all from S-C-R-A-T-C-H.

^ matt doesnt know that the dough eventually becomes something we eat which you shouldnt get dirty by putting it around your sweaty neck :\.

^ he always naturally looks like this.

^ finished product: dumplings! :p

happy bday tiff!

kicker :)

no one cares about pictures anymore :(

grace's quartet concert

we're all so proud :)

meet the parents

^ we had a cajun-themed dinner with our longhorn family parents, marcus and jocelin, so our significant others could "meet the parents" :p. marcus and jocelin are SO much fun to be around, are very hospitable, and it's so sweet having a "family" here in austin :). another thing, seeing how marcus and jocelin interact and love each other makes you look forward to "the married life."

after dinner we played cranium together. LOTS of fun! ^ matt, how do you spell broccoli and playwright? :p

it's only fun if we play boys against girls -_- ^ the boy team.

^ and guess who won!? GO GIRLS! muhahaha. (funny how jennifer from the beginning thought we would lose >:O)

^ big happy (brady bunch) family :)

moms ride scooters

^ friday we went to alien scooters to test out their large supply of electrical scooters and mopeds. i want a moped now! they're not dorky like i once thought!

^ thank you ariel for gracing us with your presence :) please stop hermiting and come out to play more often.

^ my beloved mother came to visit on sunday! it was such a sweet time and i found myself tearing up multiple times when we were together. is there a reason for me being really emotional or did i just really miss my mom??? the older i get, the more i learn how wise my mom really is. i cant believe i had the audacity to actually think i was smarter than my mom when i was little!!! someone should have slapped me or something :x seirously though, she has great advice, knows how to handle/approach conflict, and loves God the best she knows how to.

another landMARK

check out the last 3 letters of this lucky driver's license plate. do you see it? it says DTR. hehe. speaking of DTR's, another landmark has passed :)...

^ M-N-J market

^ plan A: thistle :(

^ plan B: clay pit is yum :p.